The Way of the Medicine Wheel

[Imani]

Thirty six Grandfather stones placed carefully in the sacred circle, each with a purpose and gift to offer.In delicate tendrils, the sage smoke rises from the shell, my small offering to the universe this night

In the center, near the Creator Stone I stand, like a waiting child, arms outreaching, in supplication, waiting for direction and wisdom from the ancient ones.

Here am I.... in this eternal compass, and cosmic map that carries within it the wisdom of the ages

 

The air above me, the earth below and the fire within me,

I become the conduit for divine energy and through me, I feel the power rise and fall with each breath

The Great Spiral of the universe holds me in it's strength, Therein, is chaos and peace

It is here I become the alchemist, the crucible, where I may create what is in my heart and soul.

My feet begin to travel the wheel, each footstep is a prayer of gratitude each footsteps a kiss to Earth Mother,

gathering strength and wisdom from the four directions, I walk.

In silent prayer and meditation I face the East wind,

the place of the rising sun, my birth place in the medicine wheel, where the eagle flies

I asked for inner peace and closer connection to you, the Great Mystery.

Your answer to me was to send me walking in the wilderness, aloneness and the dark night of the soul,

so that as I wandered in the dark, my eyes may see your light brighter by contrast.

So, that I may shed ego and attachment to the doings of mankind.

In that darkness I found you and in you, I found myself ....  in the East, the place of new beginnings

and Eagle's flight

I learned to be free in a world of captives

 

I turned South, to Coyote and Wolf, the direction of human emotions and

the totems who teach the way of right relationship

where I begged for the love of another

and you sent the lesson of loss and abandonment

You broke my heart in order to set it free, for in that desert I wandered long,

feeling every emotion until it left me empty and wasted, beyond thirst or want.

In that hot, arid place my tears came, only to evaporate in the silent winds

And as I came undone, I emptied myself so that I may be free to love again

until at last, I found the gentle love I was looking for ...  in myself

 

 

The West wind calls to me, and I answer,

I look for brother Bear, the keeper of the great Void. "see me brother, I am here"

He lumbers toward me in his friendly way, always ready to journey to the shadow places

"yanv, please travel with me and lend your strength" , I pray

for it is here here I will face my greatest enemy...

May I have strength and an honest heart to do so

Deep within the shadows I let my spirit drift into the void, the place where the mists clear

and the veils fall,

where the spirit and soul may ignite into truth or wither in despair

Here is where the warrior falls on her knees and faces death,

removes the mask and is naked before herself

Here is where she creates heaven or hell

In this holy place i have prostrated myself and wept over what I have become

I surrender, once again, to be forged in fire and rise from the flame

 

The North wind calls and I face the direction of completion, where the mind travels to the place

of the ancestors.

Time of the long snows moon when  Earthmother retreats deep inside herself in preparation of renewal

I seek wisdom here, insight and clarity.

But my wisdom is turned inside out and I become the fool, not knowing where to place my next footstep,

the path has become a mist

I lose myself, to find myself again.

I empty myself to become full

And I step into the beloved forest and become invisable to all but nature

Here is where the ancestors speak

In the wind they whisper to me

In the waters I am washed clean

and in the way of nature's cycles, I die, and am reborn again